healingchoicesvethttps://healingchoicesvet.wordpress.com
Preventive, holistic veterinary care for your pet.Tue, 20 Mar 2018 01:54:14 +0000enhourly1http://wordpress.com/https://secure.gravatar.com/blavatar/8bbe26fc9278fbfe5ef7703c8c8a3b39?s=96&d=https%3A%2F%2Fs0.wp.com%2Fi%2Fbuttonw-com.pnghealingchoicesvethttps://healingchoicesvet.wordpress.com
Pet Moose? Wildlife Should Remain Wild!https://healingchoicesvet.wordpress.com/2014/06/16/pet-moose-wildlife-should-remain-wild/
https://healingchoicesvet.wordpress.com/2014/06/16/pet-moose-wildlife-should-remain-wild/#respondMon, 16 Jun 2014 18:15:50 +0000http://healingchoicesvet.wordpress.com/2014/06/16/pet-moose-wildlife-should-remain-wild/Rumpydog: It seems that there’s a problem with people in Alaska wanting to touch baby moose- and even wanting to keep them as pets! Sure the baby is cute, but it belongs with its’ mother. (Photo: AP) ? According to the Associated Press, there have been a string of incidents involving people in Alaska…]]>

It seems that there’s a problem with people in Alaska wanting to touch baby moose- and even wanting to keep them as pets!

Sure the baby is cute, but it belongs with its’ mother. (Photo: AP)

According to the Associated Press, there have been a string of incidents involving people in Alaska trying to do just that. Persons in Willow had a baby moose in their back yard in a dog run with a collar around its neck. Some folks in Wasilla had a baby moose in their living room.

But it’s not just moose, is it?

In recent years there have been a rash of stories of people taking in baby deer and raising them as pets.

And look at all the other wildlife humans have tried to tame in order to keep them for their entertainment- big cats, monkeys, snakes, birds, sugar gliders.

With the hotter weather either here or approaching, it seems only logical that a dog, cat, child or any other living creature, should not be left in a car. However, logic seems to go “out the window” for many people as authorities still get hundreds if not thousands of “dog in a hot car” calls each summer.

Don’t think that your car will get hot only if it’s in the sun. A vehicle heats up about 20°F hotter than the outside temperature EVEN IN THE SHADE and EVEN IF THE WINDOWS ARE OPEN!!!

Just how hot does a car get?A study done by the Animal Protection Institute clearly showed how dangerous it is to leave a dog in a vehicle, even in moderately warm temperatures, with windows cracked.Here is what some of the readings looked like:

Really important to know that these readings were taken in a shaded area..NOT in the SUN!!!

In temperatures like these a dog can suffer heat exhaustion within minutes, leading to heat stroke and death. Each year, authorities lay charges against careless pet owners whose animals either died from being left in a hot car, or would have died if not for the intervention of horrified on-lookers.

Dogs cannot, like us, cool down by sweating, nor can they peel off a layer of clothing (or fur). Their only means of cooling themselves is through panting and drinking water. In temperatures this high (or even considerably lower than those above) a dog cannot adequately cool itself and quickly overheats.

Brachycephalic breeds (the short-nosed breeds, like as Bulldogs, Boxers and Pugs), large heavy-coated breeds, and those dogs with heart or respiratory problems are more at risk for heat stroke.

Our best advice this summer is not to take your dog on a car trip with you, if there is a chance you will need to leave them in the car in the heat and that means even if just for a few minutes for a quick errand. If this is unavoidable, make sure someone comes with you, to stay in the car, in the shade, with the windows and doors wide open, taking the dogs out of the car and offering lots of fresh, cool water.

If you are alone and the above scenario isn’t possible, here are some creative ideas.• Use the drive-through if possible. This works for some restaurants, banks, and pharmacies.• Shop in pet-welcome stores. Pet stores typically allow pets, and they do carry “human” items like candy and snacks.• Utilize a travel kennel outside the car, in the shade, if possible. Enlist the help of a shopkeeper to watch your dog while you do what you need to do. Use common sense and caution with this tip; not for use in parking lots, not in an area where your pet could be pestered by bystanders, etc., etc. In general, travel kennels are a great way to keep your pet safe while in fresh air, with cool water, and so on.

If you see an animal or a child in a hot vehicle (children die this way each year too!!), do your part to prevent animal (and child) abuse and neglect. Call a shelter, animal control or police immediately! If you are uncomfortable reporting a problem, please find assistance through a store manager, friend or family member to help those in need. Getting involved can and does save lives

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]]>https://healingchoicesvet.wordpress.com/2014/05/20/hot-car-death-for-a-dog/feed/0healingchoicesvetImageAnimal Welfare Scientist Elected Fellow of the Royal Societyhttps://healingchoicesvet.wordpress.com/2014/05/08/animal-welfare-scientist-elected-fellow-of-the-royal-society/
https://healingchoicesvet.wordpress.com/2014/05/08/animal-welfare-scientist-elected-fellow-of-the-royal-society/#respondThu, 08 May 2014 16:04:24 +0000http://healingchoicesvet.wordpress.com/2014/05/08/animal-welfare-scientist-elected-fellow-of-the-royal-society/Science and Dogs: Professor Marian Dawkins, Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, Fellow of the Royal Society Those who follow research into animal welfare must be familiar with the work of Marian Dawkins. When she began looking into animal welfare the topic was not only unpopular but largely…]]>

Professor Marian Dawkins, Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, Fellow of the Royal Society

Those who follow research into animal welfare must be familiar with the work of Marian Dawkins. When she began looking into animal welfare the topic was not only unpopular but largely dismissed due to what was perceived as a purely subjective pursuit. Dawkins, more than anyone else change that, and she did it with solid research.

For this and many other reasons I was happy to see her name included in the new batch of Fellows of the Royal Society, an honour well-earned.

]]>https://healingchoicesvet.wordpress.com/2014/05/07/healing-choices-vet/feed/0healingchoicesvetHealing choices vet. Why do we do so much with our dogs these days?https://healingchoicesvet.wordpress.com/2014/05/06/why-do-we-do-so-much-with-our-dogs-these-days/
https://healingchoicesvet.wordpress.com/2014/05/06/why-do-we-do-so-much-with-our-dogs-these-days/#respondTue, 06 May 2014 16:44:32 +0000http://healingchoicesvet.wordpress.com/2014/05/06/why-do-we-do-so-much-with-our-dogs-these-days/No Dog About It Blog: As a friend and I walked around the dog park yesterday, she shared her experience with “nose work.” She and her dog, Ellie, are into their second set of classes and Ellie is absolutely loving it. So much so that she can’t wait to get out and do…]]>

As a friend and I walked around the dog park yesterday, she shared her experience with “nose work.” She and her dog, Ellie, are into their second set of classes and Ellie is absolutely loving it. So much so that she can’t wait to get out and do it again as soon as she is done!

Like many dogs these days, Ellie has already done and experienced so much. She has already been through basic and advanced dog obedience and has her therapy dog certification. She has gone on camping trips and loves going with her mom on her kayak adventures. She is an active dog with a mom who loves to do things with her.

It got me to thinking about how much has changed in our world when it comes to dogs. Sixty or seventy years ago, a dog would have been great entertainment for the kids, might have been…

• Dogs and cats are carnivores, so their entire body from nose to tail is designed to eat raw meat

• They should get hydration from the food they eat, through digestion. They get the benefit of this from raw meat

• The enzymes and bioavailability of nutrients in raw are essential to their optimal health

• It helps their bodies become more acidic, creating a naturally unfriendly environment for parasites and bacteria

• It helps promote healthier teeth and gums

• It is one of the best preventions against disease and promotes a healthier, longer life

If your dog or cat is currently on a dry diet, we recommend first transitioning them to a grain free, human grade canned food. We advise our clients to feed dry in the morning and canned in the evening or vice versa for a few days, then remove the dry food and replace it with canned. Always ensure they are eating adequate amounts of food, especially cats who can get very sick, very quickly if they don’t eat. For animals really addicted to dry food, you can also mix a little canned into the dry and gradually increase the amount of canned and decrease the dry. Do this for as long as it takes to get them onto canned food.

Once on canned food, you can mix a little raw (dehydrated raw is also a good option) into the canned and again gradually increase the raw and decrease the canned. A caution NEVER to mix raw with dry food! It can cause serious gastrointestinal upset as it requires two very different digestive processes. The transitioning process can actually be pretty quick, depending on how much your dog or cat likes raw and whether they have any underlying health issues (especially GI problems). If they are experiencing any GI reaction (runny stool or vomiting) then slow down to let their bodies adjust to the change.

What to feed?

A raw diet for dogs should contain 50% muscle meat, 15% ground bone, 10% organs (kidney, liver and heart) and 25% veggies. For dogs you can choose beef, chicken, turkey, lamb or some of the more exotic meats like buffalo, ostrich, venison etc. Fish, like salmon, herring and sole can also be fed periodically but keep in mind fish has less caloric value so you need to feed more. We do not recommend feeding pork (difficult to digest and prone to parasites). Salmon must not be fed fresh! Freeze it in a fridge freezer for at least 14 days or in a deep freezer for 7 days. The freezing process kills a dangerous parasite called Flukes, which is common in Salmon.

Cats can have higher protein and have a higher organ requirement. Feline raw diets should contain 60% muscle meat, 15% bone, 20% organs and 5% veggies. Cat should not be fed red meat exclusively. They should have some kind of poultry like chicken, turkey or quail at least 50% of the time (if they will eat it!) Good veggies include: Yam, sweet potato, chard, bok choy, kale, zucchini, and a variety of greens (spinach is OK but in small amounts as it is high in calcium). Veggies can be pureed or cooked and mashed. Fruit can also be included like apples, pears and blueberries.

DO NOT FEED: tomato, peppers, eggplant, onions, grapes, raisins, (broccoli is not recommended for hypothyroid dogs but OK in small amounts if that is not a concern) Raw bones (turkey necks, chicken necks, lamb necks, beef or buffalo shank and marrow) are an essential part of the diet but NEVER feed raw bones until your animal has been on a fully raw diet for at least 3-4 weeks, so they build up the digestive enzymes to digest bone. If you are not feeding bones, or if the diet does not have ground bone added, you must be sure to add bone meal. If you are feeding turkey, chicken or lamb necks, be sure to include that in their total food volume as they will eat the whole thing! Many dogs and cats can only handle a bone every other day or every 3 days. A bone every 3 days is a good place to start and if stools are too hard or dry cut back on the bones. Too much bone can lead to constipation! Hard, dry, crumbly stools mean too much too.

Feeding guidelines in general are 100-200 grams (3.5-7 ounces) of food per 10 pounds of body weight, 100 gr. for a less active animal, 200 gr. for active or higher strung animals. It is a very general guideline, you feed based on their hunger level and where they are maintaining a good weight. A note that puppies and kittens can eat up to 4 times the amount of an adult as they are growing and can be fed up to 4 times a day. They need to be weighed regularly to make sure they are gaining weight appropriately. Many companies are making prepared raw food for dogs and cats. In choosing a brand, it is ideal to feed hormone and antibiotic free meat. We prefer free range and ethically raised animals.

Supplements: We recommend a good fish oil for EFA’s (look for small, short lived, fast moving fish like sardines and anchovy-lessoning the buildup of heavy metals – recommend Ascenta Oil for Dogs and Cats), a good Multi Vitamin/ mineral like Canine Plus and NuCat from Vetri Science and a Probiotic for gut health (Olie Naturals, PB8, Udo’s Super 8)

Warning: Following the above recommendations may result in fresher breath, a shinier coat, healthier stools, less body odor and a decrease in water consumption (which is perfectly normal as your pet will be absorbing moisture from the food they eat!), more energy and increased health and longevity!

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]]>https://healingchoicesvet.wordpress.com/2014/05/05/the-whys-and-hows-of-feeding-raw/feed/0healingchoicesvet2c0d7a3a3dbdd26e340a3fc0cc4f1725lp-aspx-3.jpegKibble – 101https://healingchoicesvet.wordpress.com/2014/05/02/kibble-101/
https://healingchoicesvet.wordpress.com/2014/05/02/kibble-101/#respondFri, 02 May 2014 18:33:50 +0000http://healingchoicesvet.wordpress.com/?p=25How is it that kibble diets became the norm in how we feed our dogs and cats? To fully answer this question, we must look at the history of how manufactured pet food originated.

In the late 1850’s, a young electrician from Cincinnatti named James Spratt went to London to sell lightning rods. When his ship arrived, crew members threw left over ship biscuits onto the dock, where they were devoured by hordes of waiting dogs. Spratt had the idea to make cheap, easy to serve biscuits made of wheat, beet root, vegetables and beef blood and sell them to urban dog owners. They sold like hotcakes….and in 1870 he took his business to New York and began the American pet food industry. The FH Bennet Biscuit company starting making bone shaped biscuits in 1908. The first canned dog food in the US was introduced in 1922, using horse meat. It became so successful that horses were bred just for dog food….at a slaughter rate of 50,000 a year. In 1931 Nabisco bought Bennets’ company and renamed the biscuits “Milkbones”, and a massive sales campaign got Milkbones onto store shelves. By 1941 canned dog food had 90% of the market but then the US entered World War 2. Tin and meat were rationed and dry dog food became popular again. In 1950, Ralston Purina started using a cooking extruder to puff air into its’ Chex cereal to keep it crisp in milk. Fuelled by complaints about the appearance, texture and digestibility of dry dog food, Purina’s pet food division used the extruder to experiment with dog food and the result was Purina Dog Chow. The Pet Food Institute began lobbying for the pet food industry in the mid 1960’s, to get people to stop feeding their dogs anything but packaged dog food, funding reports, supported by veterinarians, detailing its’ benefits and running radio ads with celebrities warning of the “dangers of table scraps”.

The dog food industry was spending 50 million dollars a year in advertising and by 1975 there were more than 1,500 dog foods on the market. For anyone born since about 1950 the notion of feeding a dog or cat “people food” seems absurd. Yet the truth is, we have been feeding dog and cat food that is actually highly processed people food for the purpose of long shelf life, economy and convenience. A basic understanding of nutrition and physiological function tells us that this may not be the most nutritious diet, even for a human being, let alone an animal. It is akin to us eating only cereal and taking vitamins for our entire lives and thinking we will be healthy.

There are many reasons why kibble is not an optimum, healthy diet for a dog and cat. One simple truth is that their digestive system is not designed to handle processed food. Here are some other key points:

• Kibble usually contains grains (wheat, corn, rice, barley, oats) in higher amounts than the meat content. Dogs and cats do not have long enough digestive tracts (unlike humans) to process grains and also do not have adequate enzymes to digest starch.

• Kibble contains cooked meat and meat by-products which are digestible but how much nutrition they absorb is questionable. Meat sources are often of poor quality and cooking destroys valuable enzymes and nutrients. • Kibble can be dehydrating. Dogs and cats are designed to absorb a majority of their hydration (moisture) from the blood of their prey. When eating dry food, they must compensate by drinking a lot of water yet because of the length of a carnivores’ GI system, the dry food often does not have time to become adequately moistened. Instead of giving vital fluid that contains not only hydration but nutrients, the dry food draws moisture from the animals’ body, leading to chronic dehydration. As a result, the kidneys are not often able to function correctly which may lead to renal disease. The absorption of essential water and nutrients via the GI system also comes into question.

• Synthetic vitamins and minerals are often used, which are neither molecularly nor nutritionally equal to the natural source nutrients in raw food and can be detrimental if not in appropriate amounts and in proper ratio to each other.

• A dog and cats system should be acidic (as opposed to humans who should be alkaline). Processed diets can lead to a PH that is too high (alkaline) leaving the animal more susceptible to parasites and bacteria.

• Kibble is one of the worst contributors to tartar. This is contrary to what we have been told for eons but independent studies of kibble, canned and raw diets proved kibble to be the worst as far as tartar was concerned. Particles of hard, dry food works its way under the gum line as the animal crunches, and combine with saliva into a paste that forms the basis for tartar. We don’t floss our animals’ teeth, so it sits there and also leads to decay. Think of it like the difference between you eating an apple and a cookie. (the cookie leaves a lot more crud behind!)

• Kibble has only been fed for 100 years. Evolution on the anatomical and physiological level takes hundreds of thousands, if not millions of years. More and more veterinarians, holistic and conventional, are coming to the understanding that our dogs and cats are carnivores and therefore should be eating what is natural for them. The Canadian Food Guide (for people) is advising to stop consuming processed food and eat live food to be healthier. Why would we not apply the same logic to our animals? The principles of common sense should be used, to turn the clock back to what we used to feed before processed diets became popular and when dogs and cats were living healthier, longer. They were not considered geriatric at age 7 and they often didn’t spend half their lives on medication.

Looking at a cute, fluffy white Maltese, it is hard to imagine that this little dog is essentially the same as a Wolf! While they may look different on the outside, on the inside, they are identical and have similar nutritional requirements. To truly understand how little difference there is between the wolf and the domestic dog, we have to look at their history of evolution. No one knows for sure how the human/canine bond began but we do know that it started about 15,000 years ago. There are two theories. One is that the humans of the day took in, tamed and bred wolf cubs. The other is that wild canines learned that humans meant food, and being a skilled opportunist, they befriended humans. Humans bred those that were less aggressive, were better at begging for food, helped in the hunt and raised an alert to a potential threat, especially at night. In the short term, this was a mutually beneficial relationship and in the very, very long term, it led to the special connection we have with the domesticated dog today. Domestication does not however mean a change in evolution (that would take millions of years) and it has been proven that the domestic dogs’ closest relative is in fact the wolf. In 1993, the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History and the American Society of Mammalogists analyzed DNA tests on wolves and dogs. The results showed that the domestic dog is 20 times more closely related to the gray wolf, than the gray wolf is to the coyote. Therefore it is believed the dog is a direct descendant and it was renamed “canis lupus familiaris”, a subspecies of wolf. Their DNA is virtually identical. Even if they don’t look like their wild cousins, there is no denying that a dog’s physiology proves it to be a carnivore and as such, it is designed, from nose to tail, to eat and process raw meat! The dog has sharp teeth that tear and swallow food (neither flattened molars nor sideways jaw movement for grinding) and a strong jaw for crushing bones. The stomach is large and muscular, allowing for the ingestion of large meals (relative to its size) and a dogs stomach should be acidic (as it is when on a raw diet) enabling it to digest whole raw bone pieces through absorption of calcium (we caution that a dog should not be fed raw bones until they have been on a completely raw diet for a month). It also makes for an extremely hostile environment for parasites and bacteria. This comes in very handy should it need to ingest a rotting carcass when food is scarce, protecting the animal from bacteria, salmonella, e-coli, giardia etc. On to the intestines, only 6 feet long, the function of which is to absorb nutrients and eliminate digested raw meat quickly, before it putrefies. Compare that to human intestines at an average 26 feet in length and a cow’s intestines which can measure more than 120 feet….more appropriate for a true omnivore or herbivore. Does a carnivore also eat vegetable matter? Indeed it does. Its’ main source of carbohydrates is through the stomach contents of its prey. When meat is scarce it will also supplement its diet with fermenting fruit, seeds, nuts and grasses, eggs and fish. It seems that we can categorize the dog, wild or domesticated, as an omnivore with a highly carnivorous diet. There is no doubt about it….cats are wild by nature! However sweet, however tame, however comfy she is by the fire or on her favorite perch, in her favorite bed, we know she is not far from self-sufficiency. If our sweet little kitty somehow ended up living outside, there is a strong chance she would hunt, eat and survive. Some are more efficient hunters than others, evidenced by the prizes they might drop at the doorstep, or bring in the house to proudly display. Birds, bats, mice, rats and even larger prey like pigeons or rabbits. Thousands of cats in feral colonies survive and thrive in cities and then there are the barn cats of the world, who not only flourish but help their people in keeping rodent populations down. Cats have been connected with humans for 3500 – 4500 years. Their relationship with people traces back to Egypt when they were used to keep grain stocks along the Nile free of vermin. In all its’ history of domestication, the cat has remained virtually unchanged and raw diets have fed the order Carnivora for 60 million years! It is believed that modern domestic cats’ closest relative is the African Wild Cat. More recent scientific investigation shows the cats of Egypt to be the closest relative of the domestic cat. Having descended from a desert animal makes our kitties lovers of sun and heat but also gives them a rather unique characteristic….they are neither designed nor intended to drink much water. A cat, domestic or wild, should get it’s hydration from the blood of its prey. Naturally, cats do not have a high thirst drive but when they eat dry food they must drink a lot of water. Water consumption through drinking is not ideal for hydration because they are intended to absorb and process water through digestion, not through drinking and constant filtering through the kidneys and urinary system. This alone tells us a cat needs to eat raw meat for its body to function properly, but there are many other physiological features that prove the cat to be a true or obligate carnivore. These include sharp, elongated canine teeth, used for grabbing, holding and subduing prey, sharp carnassial teeth to shear flesh, a shorter snout for increased bite power, keen diurnal and nocturnal vision, muscular back legs for pouncing on and ambushing prey, independent movement of ears to determine distance and location of prey, long whiskers to pick up minute vibrations of prey walking and sharp retractable claws to grab and hold down a potential meal. Like dogs, cats have a short digestive tract to digest meat and move it through the GI system quickly so it doesn’t putrefy, but there are even more vital reasons why a cat needs to eat raw meat to thrive. Certain liver enzymes used to break down protein are always active in a cat. Part of its protein intake is used to fuel this on-going process. A lower protein diet does not de-active it. Cats derive the majority of the enzymes they require for digestion from a raw diet. When not on raw, their pancreas must work overtime to provide these enzymes and this can lead to exocrine pancreatic insufficiency, pancreatitis and absorption problems. Some additional points about nutrition for an obligate carnivore: Felines have no nutritional requirement for carbohydrates. They obtain most of the energy they need from animal fats and proteins and they cannot utilize fat from vegetable sources. Animal fats carry water soluble vitamins D, E, A and K, linoleic acid and arachidonic acid. All of these are essential to the feline. Cats cannot convert beta-carotene from plant sources into vitamin A. They must get vitamin A naturally through sources such as liver, heart, animal fat and muscle meat. Taurine is also essential but it is very important that this amino acid is naturally occurring in the diet. Cats are unable to synthesize their own taurine from other amino acids (like most of the rest of us!) because they don’t have high enough levels of certain enzymes. Taurine is a type of organic amino acid essential for vision, immune health, cardiac muscle function and nervous and reproductive system function and the best way for a cat to get it, is through raw meat.